Some time ago our Local Spiritual Assembly decided to offer public meditation classes, using the excellent CALM course by Paul Profaska (published by George Ronald). We began the classes once a week in the village hall in neighbouring Woolmer Green. Our cluster coordinator brought along three of her friends; Dan, a teacher, brought his classroom assistant; and a number of the Welwyn Baha’is also came along.

Course has nine chapters, but we’d booked only six nights in the village hall. By the time we got together for the sixth session we were down to eight: Fariba and her friends, Beverly, Janet and Mary, Dan and his assistant Natasha, Erica and me. The course had worked its magic: everyone said they were benefiting from the weekly meditation, people had relaxed, and we all felt we wanted to continue.

Erica and I offered our home. The classes resumed after the Easter break.

There’s time in each session of the course for participants to talk about the week they’ve had, to share what they’re learning from the course and anything else they want to talk about.

When we started everyone was rather cautious, unsure about what it would be safe to share. By the time we launched into session 7, the group had gelled and the more intimate atmosphere of our home encouraged everyone to talk more openly about what was happening in their lives and about their journey along the spiritual path.

One spoke of how she had closed her heart off from others during a particularly traumatic time in her life; she had forgotten to reopen herself to others. It was the meditation class that had helped her to realize this and to begin to trust others again and be open to them.

We did chapter 8 last night. Everyone shared something from their week - a change of field of service in the Baha’i community, further opening of the heart, a first time experience as a delegate to Baha’i National Convention, family difficulties. The meditation classes had been helpful for most of us in dealing with our tests and difficulties; for some, learning to meditate had been life-transforming. We’ve all become much closer to each other and we’ll all miss the class once we’ve completed the final chapter next week.

Of course, there’s always Ruhi Book 1…

And that was the initial point of running the classes, to give those who might not wish to launch straight into a Ruhi course the opportunity to meet Baha’is, to benefit from meditation and to begin to walk the spiritual path to a point where they would feel ready to join a study circle. I have no doubt that the classes have helped everyone to make spiritual progress. In the weeks we’ve been studying and practising, our friends have opened up, have begun to acknowledge the spiritual dimension of their lives, have found a language in which to talk about that dimension, and have encountered and discussed the Word of God in the form of quotations from the Writings of Baha’u'llah and ‘Abdu’l-Baha.

These evenings have brought that deep happiness that only comes from the life of the spirit.

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